Theme parks can be found worldwide, attracting millions of visitors,
by allowing them to experience a multitude of exciting and thrilling attractions.
Guests are often drawn to the size and scale of the parks flagship rides, roller coasters.
But from first impressions, these huge structures of wood and steel
have an intimidating and dangerous appearance.
The perception that theme park rides are unsafe, and somewhat perilous,
has been highly exploited by the media over the recent years.
Various news articles exaggerate circumstances to make routine operations seem like terrifying events.
This form of scaremongering, for the attention of the public,
has led to many questioning the safety of roller coasters, and theme parks in general.
In this video, we’ll explore what’s really happening during the events seen in the news,
as well as recognise the multitude of protective measures in place to keep guests safe.
One of the most common concerns of roller coaster safety occurs when a ride has broken down.
To the uninformed, a roller coaster temporarily closing to the public could seem like a huge issue.
This is however far from the truth.
Roller coasters that have temporarily ceased operation, often referred to as ride stoppages,
are widely seen in the media.
Ride stoppages occur regularly at a functional and safe theme park for a large number of reasons:
In adverse weather conditions roller coasters may cease operation.
Aside from giving an uncomfortable experience; heavy rain, lightning storms,
and other extreme weather types may cause a ride to stop until conditions have improved.
Throughout the tight twists and turns of a roller coaster,
some riders might become ill.
If they do so, the ride operator may stop the ride so the guest can be attended too.
The attraction can also temporarily close so that part of the ride area can be cleaned
as a result of unwell guests.
Cameras and Mobile Phones: Unless you have the correct permission,
it is unsafe to attempt to record the ride experience while on a roller coaster.
As a result, some parks may temporarily stop the ride so the recording device can be retrieved.
Loose items can often fall from the pockets of riders.
This can be dangerous as these items can collide with people on, or around the ride.
If the item needs to be retrieved, the attraction must be stopped,
allowing for a member of staff to safely enter the ride area and collect the lost property.
To reduce this happening, loose items should be stored in the designated ride baggage zones.
To ensure a smooth and safe ride experience,
roller coasters are equipped with hundreds of sensors.
These sensors monitor all aspects of the ride, from ensuring the attraction is operating correctly,
to locating the position of the trains.
Sometimes, sensors can be overly sensitive.
This can cause the computer system to stop the ride, as it detects there may be an issue.
These problems are quickly rectified by the operators of the ride,
who follow predetermined procedures to analyse and fix the issue.
Once the attraction is operating again, several empty trains are sent around the circuit,
before guests can board.
The most unlikely, and extremely rare reason for a ride stoppage is a mechanical fault.
If a mechanical fault of some degree does occur,
the computer system will shut the ride down, protecting all those on board.
On top of these reasons for why a ride stoppage can occur, at any point in time,
the operators of the attraction can force the ride to stop.
If staff believe that certain guests on, or around the attraction are at risk,
they will temporarily close the roller coaster.
If a ride stoppage does occur, there are two main solutions.
The first involves solving the issue and restarting the roller coaster.
This means that guests can complete the remainder of the ride layout, and return,
as normal, to the station.
While the second solution involves removing guests from the attraction.
This method, referred to as a ride evacuation,
results in the hosts of the roller coaster manually releasing the guests from the trains of the ride.
They are safely escorted out of the ride area by members of staff.
Fortunately, due to the way in which roller coasters are designed,
the trains of the ride commonly come to a stop in two key locations,
both of which feature specific methods to bring guests to a stop.
The first location, the ride's lift hill, features an anti-rollback system,
which prevents the train from moving back towards the base of the hill.
Instead, the train of the ride will remain stationary if the chain fails to move forwards.
The second stopping location can be found along the brake run of the roller coaster.
Throughout the ride's layout, various brakes cause the trains to slow down,
and stop, if necessary.
These brakes are engaged by default, meaning they function regardless of any ride system issue.
Located beside these two common stopping points are catwalks,
small platforms that allow riders to walk harmlessly out of the ride area.
Catwalks, as well as the regularly trained ride hosts, make evacuations a painless,
yet crucial part of a safely operating roller coaster.
A secondary concern of those riding roller coasters can often be the restraint,
located on the seats of the trains.
Riders can feel insecure when they pull the restraint into position, as it may be loose.
The ride vehicles have been designed to accommodate all guests above the height restriction.
Therefore, if you are tall enough to ride the attraction,
and can close the restraint comfortably, you will be safely held within the ride.
On top of this, seat restraints feature a multitude of additional
and redundant safety features.
A clear example of this is the seatbelt often attached to the over the shoulder restraints,
found on some rides.
The seatbelt is an extra security measure and not crucial to rider safety.
As a result, a seat belt coming undone throughout the experience poses no threat to riders.
Similar to all other aspects of roller coasters, the restraints also feature sensors,
which feed information back to the ride computer system.
The computer system itself is extremely extensive, as it ensures the ride is functioning correctly at all times.
The systems consistently and accurately monitors the progress of the trains around the ride circuit,
as well as the statistics of the entire coaster itself.
Through the hundreds of sensors scattered around the attraction,
the computer system can determine the location of every train on the track.
This information is crucial due to the way in which roller coasters operate.
The track layout of a roller coaster is split up into various sections,
known effectively as block sections.
The computer system allows for only a single train to exist in each block section at any point in time.
As a result, a new train cannot enter a specific segment of track until it is empty.
Areas of brakes can be found before and after each block section,
allowing for the progress of a train to be paused until the track in front is clear.
This system, which in principle is very similar to those found on commuter railway networks,
removes the possibility of two different trains interacting.
On top of these highly advanced computer systems, which monitor every aspect of the ride in real time,
roller coasters and theme park attractions are inspected daily.
Alton Towers, one of the UK’s leading Theme Parks, state:
“It takes 8 man-hours to get one of our big coasters ready for opening every morning”.
During this time, the track and trains are inspected,
the systems are tested, and the cars complete several circuits of the layout.
Only after the entire inspection has been completed can guests begin to board the ride.
Larger scale maintenance work is completed on all theme park attractions
during out of season months.
At this point in time, the trains of the ride are disassembled and reassembled,
the track is finely inspected,
and the roller coaster is often certified as safe to operate by an external inspection body.
Right now, there are thousands of people riding roller coasters around the globe.
Over the course of a year, hundreds of millions of people visit theme parks,
and enjoy the diverse variety of attractions they have to offer.
As a result theme parks and amusement parks
have become one of the safest and most popular forms of recreational activities.
With new parks appearing around the world, and existing ones gaining new and more exciting attractions,
the enjoyment of roller coasters and other rides will only increase in the future.
The point to remember, is that the world of theme parks revolves constantly
around the satisfaction and well being of its guests.
Thank you for watching, and I’ll see you all next time.